“Then there were the people.
Assames, Jats, and Punjabis; people from Rajasthan, Bengal, and Tamil Nadu;
from Pushkar, Cochin, and Konarak; warrior caste, Brahmin, and untouchable;
Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Parsee, Jain, Animist; fair skin and dark,
green eyes and golden brown and black; every different face and form of that
extravagant variety, that incomparable beauty, India.” -Shantaram
December Holiday Break
Again,
I apologize for this long overdue post...
Over
the holiday break in December we decided to spend about two weeks exploring
Southern India. India is so incredibly massive with an infinite number of
places to experience, so it’s always challenging to make an itinerary…but I
think we did this one well.
On
December 19 we first flew down to a city called Mangalore in the state of Karnataka
and took a four-hour taxi ride to a rainforest in the Western Ghats (mountain
range). The ride was breathtaking…possibly the most scenic, beautiful, and
unique car ride I have ever experienced. The streets were lined with palm
trees, mountains, brightly colored mosques, Hindu shrines, cows, flowers,
farmers, rice paddies, small villages, monkeys, and waterfalls. Six of us
squeezed in a hatch-back station wagon (with 2 sitting in the “trunk”), windows
down, music loud. We stopped along the way for a quick thali lunch at a
roadside restaurant, which are always the best, and continued on until we
reached the Rainforest Retreat.
Here, in the middle of the rainforest stood the
most relaxing and surreal environment to camp, eat phenomenal Southern
Indian food, drink home-made rum, hike through the mountains, and lie in a
hammock reading a book. We did this for two days. We slept in platform tents in
the middle of the forest, showered with buckets of steaming water heated in a
pot over coals, and breathed in the cool, crisp air at night sitting around a
campfire—such a stark difference from the highly polluted, congested, and loud
(yet wonderful in its own way) city of Hyderabad.
Although
we did not want to leave, on the third day we headed further south to the state
of Kerala. Again we experienced another scenic card ride, but this one was 14
hours long. It was supposed to be ten, but what happened? India! That is our
answer for everything, especially when traveling, because nothing ever goes as
planned and everything is always uncertain. First, as we approached the state
border to Kerala, our car was pulled over at a “checkpoint” where we discovered
that the taxi we rented had an expired registration. Kerala has a communist
government and they do not mess around. After about an hour of waiting down the
street in the middle of nowhere (because the police would not let us sit
outside their building), the second cab came. We had some unfortunate arguments
over the cost of the cab, because we felt we should get a discount for this
major inconvenience caused by the cab company…but they disagreed. So back on
the road again. We then discovered that we could not take the “high way,” which
isn’t really a highway, just a faster-moving road, because it was under
construction. So we drove the entire way through village after village along
the coast. It was beautiful but long.
The
next morning we woke up early, jumped on a public bus, and headed further south
one hour to Alleppey, where our houseboat was waiting for us. It is very
popular in Kerala to rent a houseboat for a couple of days to enjoy the “backwaters”
lined with coconut groves, palm trees, and rice paddies. Similar to the
previous days at the rainforest, we spent our time just relaxing and taking it
all in. On the boat there were four crewmembers—a captain, a chef, and two
helpers. The chef prepared three mouthwatering meals a day, plus chai and a
snack twice a day. Keralan food differs greatly from Hyderabadi food, so we
were exposed to new dishes, flavors, and spices. My favorites were the fresh
water lobster, coconut curries, and fried bananas.
On
the third day on the boat, we docked back in Allepey. At that point, I split
off from the group, who stayed in Kerala, and I headed to the airport to fly to
Pune in Maharasthra state to meet up with Nell, one of my best friends from
college who lives in Thailand and was coming to India for a wedding (and to see
me!). It was wonderful getting to spend time with her and gallivant around Pune
together. We went to an ancient Hindu cave temple, walked through a beautiful
park, visited a famous ashram (the Osho Ashram, famous for historically practicing
“free love”), stuffed our faces at every point possible, shopped, got Nell
fitted for a saree, and laid out at the hotel pool (yes…we stayed in a 5-star
hotel because her boyfriend gets a significant discount). This was literally my
first “Western shower” experience since I left America—as in, I actually had a
shower curtain and hot water, not just a faucet in the middle of the bathroom
with a bucket and water that may or may not decide to come out when I want to
shower, that may or may not be freezing cold, and that may or may not carry an
electric current and shock me. In other words, it was luxurious. We even ate
Philly cheesesteaks.
On the last day, as we were leaving the hotel to get
lunch, the lobby was filled with people waiting and being held back by security
guards. There were important-looking men everywhere, paparazzi, cameras, and
police. We befriended a man who explained that Ronaldinho, the famous Brazilian
soccer player, was coming for a press conference to discuss his upcoming
Indian-made movie, “Ronaldinho vs. Aliens.” Hilarious. Obviously we waited, and,
sure enough, he showed up about twenty minutes later. Michael, our new friend,
was determined to introduce us to Ronaldinho and “his people” (typical white
privilege behavior that is unwanted, yet constantly bestowed upon us). So he
grabbed my hand and dragged me into the mob. It was insane and quite funny.
Here’s a picture Nell found online. Can you spot me??
After
sadly leaving Nell in Pune, I flew back down south to Bangalore to meet up with
my other friends. Traveling in India is challenging since you have absolutely
no idea what will come your way and what unexpected hurdles you’ll need to jump.
Traveling alone in India is even more
challenging, since you face these same hurdles but have no one else to consult
when decisions need to be made. Here is when experience, intuition, and trust
come into play at a whole new level. After I arrived in Bangalore, I got to the
airport and again opted for taking the public bus from the airport to the bus
station in city-center, where I was going to meet up with my friends and then
take a night sleeper bus 12 hours north to Hampi, our next and final
destination. It was 8pm when I got on the bus. The driver insisted it would be
a one-hour trip max, which was perfect since the night bus was to leave at
10pm. At 9:20pm, we had been stuck in standstill traffic for already 20
minutes. The bus was literally not moving and we were on a multi-lane
highway-ish road. I looked out the window and saw increasing numbers of people
getting out of cars and busses and walking along the road or weaving around the crazy
traffic of buses, rickshaws, cars, and motorbikes. The bus driver did not speak English but kept saying, “Five minutes,”
when I asked him what was going on. That is a typical response here, and it
absolutely carries no weight. There was one other white person on the bus, an
older woman, so I approached her to see if she spoke English. She was German,
and she did. She was trying to make her way to the train station and
coincidentally was also planning on getting a ticket to Hampi that night. I had
no idea where the station was, but I knew we were in city-center.
I realized I
had two options: I could either wait on the bus, most likely missing my next bus
and assuredly getting stranded alone in Bangalore that night, or I could get
out and start walking and hopefully make my way closer to the bus station with
each step. I also recognized that I could not safely do Option 2 alone, which
is why I approached the woman. I told her I was taking a night bus to Hampi and
would help her get a ticket, if she wanted to get off the bus with me and start
walking with the other, now, mobs of people. So she agreed and I now had a
companion to venture into the streets with, since a sole woman walking alone at
night in India is a big no-no no matter where you are. We followed the crowds
of others walking, stayed along the side of the street the best we could, and
asked people every few meters for the direction to the bus station. Sure
enough, less than 20 minutes later, we were there and made it just in time!
This is one of several similar experiences, and it is always such an incredible
relief to realize that fate or chance or luck, or experience provided me with
the right circumstances and that I again made the right judgment call to get
out of the predicament. The streets of Bangalore were crowded, loud, and
chaotic. We found a “bar” (aka a counter along the sidewalk where drunk men
congregate) by the station and waited for my friends (who were also lost in the
chaos) to come find us. In true German fashion, my new friend immediately ordered
a Carlsburg, poured it into her own water-bottle, and chugged with relief.
After
an actually somewhat comfortable night’s sleep on the bus, we arrived in a
small city outside of Hampi at 6am, had some chai, and made our way by auto to
the crazy town of Hampi. As a little background, it is a “holy city” located
among the ancient ruins of the Vijayanagara Empire (1336 to 1565) and is a
UNESCO World Heritage Site. Picture, in literally every direction, ancient
Hindu temples and monuments, massive stone boulders and mountain views, rice
paddies, palm trees, markets and tourist shops lining the streets, guesthouses,
and roof top restaurants offering incredible views, Western and Indian food,
and a laid-back vibe (you sit under a straw roof on colorful cushions around
low tables). Oh, and foreigners, lots of foreigners. It was actually a shock to
see so many white people for the first time in months. Hampi also has a special
relationship with Israel (not sure why) but there were signs in Hebrew everywhere,
lots of Israelis, and even a Chabad House! Very strange.
The
whole vibe there is to relax, sit around on cushions, listen to music
(especially the sitar), eat delicious food, drink crazy fruit juices, smoke
beedies (or whatever you feel like smoking), do yoga, walk around ancient
temples, buy things, and start all over the next day. If you are not wearing
massive, bright colored baggy “ali-baba” pants with your dirty and greasy hair
in a headband, you may not fit in.
New Years Eve was hands-down the most unique
New Year’s I have ever had, and probably ever will. After trying to “get ready”
in our bungalow-hut in the dark with no electricity or mirrors, we gave up the
attempt to look at all “cute.” Instead, we had some drinks and then met up with
friends at another “restaurant” for dinner. With an invitation to a party “in
the mountains,” we decided to climb the mountain to find it. We spent the rest
of the evening amongst unbelievably massive boulders, drinking and dancing
around a bon-fire with probably 60 other crazy foreigners. It was absurd,
hilarious, and really fun. Words cannot begin to do it justice because it all
sounds so bizarre as I type. The pictures don’t do it justice either.
After
four days in Hampi, we took another night bus back to Hyderabad. We got in at
7am and I was at work and ready to roll two hours later. Sleep deprivation has been the name of the game...
